Thriving After Trauma: Stories of Living and Healing

Review\nThis book can be a kickstarter for anyone not ready or willing to tell/share their "trauma" story -- or for those working on processing their own trauma. Highly recommend. -- Laura Farber, Director, "We Are Columbine'\nEveryone who has endured trauma, or has a loved-one in trauma recovery, will benefit from the exceptional exploration, insight, and common-sense approach of Shari Botwin, the once victimized author, who now catapults other victims, not just into surviving, but thriving by regaining control, knowing they matter and having a voice. An important, healing, hopeful read. -- Rosemarie Aquilina, Court Judge, Motivational Speaker, Law Professor, Author of "Just Watch Me"\nA beautifully-written, inspirational account of courage and resilience, Thriving After Trauma is a book I will recommend again and again! -- Jenni Schaefer, Author of "Life Without Ed," "Almost Anorexic," and "Goodbye Ed, Hello Me"\nShari makes use of her unique and incredible journey to show the world what it truly means to be a survivor and masterfully uses that insight, as well as the accounts of other amazing survivors, to guide those who are suffering now on their own paths to surviving. Shari’s narrative will give others strength through her deeply personal and traumatic but ultimately inspirational story of overcoming tragedy. Her tireless efforts to help others overcome seemingly impossible obstacles truly shines through the pages. -- M. Stewart Ryan, Attorney at Laffey, Bucci, and Kent Law Firm, Former Assistant District Attorney\nShari Botwin brings her passion and hard-won wisdom to a deeply complex subject. The ways trauma manifests are as varied and unique as the person whose experience she describes. Ms. Botwin has done a masterful job of weaving her patients’ stories, her story, her skill as a therapist and her power as an activist into a readable, compelling work. She paints intimate, compassionate portraits of the devastation caused by trauma and the careful and deliberate process of healing. Her message of hope for living fully comes alive on every page. -- Elizabeth N. Kuh, M.D., Child and Adolescent Psychiatrist\nAs the collective understanding and acceptance of the impact of psychological trauma exploded in recent years, Shari Botwin was at the public forefront narrating it in newspapers and TV. Now she brings it all together in a series of real life accounts of despair and how to overcome it. Sharing her gift of translating the language and culture of psychological trauma to plain English, Botwin, a survivor herself, blends her personal anguish with the painful experience of others she counseled through the years. At its finest points this book not only informs but opens the soul. -- Bob Stewart, Freelance Journalist, New York Daily News, Philadelphia Inquirer, and Philadelphia Daily News\nAs a survivor of childhood abuse, Shari Botwin brings a deep understanding and empathy to traumatized folks lucky enough to have crossed paths with her - either in her writings, her workshops, her talks, or her individual therapy sessions. I was a domestic abuse victim until Shari guided me as I worked to become first a domestic abuse survivor and now a domestic abuse thriver. Readers of this book will learn that they are not alone as they meet some of Shari’s patients who have experienced trauma and worked to overcome it. Moreover, each chapter ends with ideas readers can use on their own journey to living a full life unencumbered by the residue of the trauma that has followed them like a shadow through their lives. No matter how long ago the trauma occurred, you can begin today to reclaim your right to happiness and fulfillment. -- Suzanne Dobkin, PhD, Domestic Abuse Warrior\nThriving After Trauma pulled at my heartstrings as this author brought such authenticity to life throughout this book. The true stories of her patients, as well as herself, give the reader a deep view into the world of those who struggle after trauma and abuse. Th